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[Dsal]

I've got a bit of crisis of gaming conscience this holiday season.

My niece asked for a GBA and games this xmas which my siblings and I are all chipping in for. On the games list she put down, Shrek 2, Pirates of the Caribbean, and A Series of Unfortunate Events. You know, straight up licensed stuff that probably isn't any good (or worse).

I told her those games might not be all that fun and that there are a lot better games like the Mario stuff. She said, "Well I don't know if I'd like those games much... they might be hard to control or something"

Now my first instinct is to give her the crappy games she wants. But I also have a responsibility as an uncle to give her GOOD GAMES that will form the foundation of her gaming life. Not to mention that in my experience, poorly designed licensed stuff is way more frustrating to play in the long run.

About 8+ years ago a simlar scenario was painted. My future brother-in-law requested Shaq Fu for Genesis from me and I obliged his disasterous pick as I was laughed out of my local Babbage's. We joke about it now, he's 21, but he still remembers the horrors of playing it to this day. "Oh man, I can't believe I asked for that piece of shit. I got bored of it the day I opened it!"

So what should I get the niece? Is there a decent licensed GBA game that I can get that combines good gameplay and the kind of licensed drek her age group likes? I don't want to get her another Shaq Fu.

 

[LowTecky]

*shrug* Kim Possible 2 was better than expected. But I'm sure she'd like any Mario Advance game better if she gave it a chance, SMA3 if I had to pick one.

 

[IJoel]

Wario Ware is a game kids of that age seem to like a lot.

 

[Duck of Death]

Are you sure all of those games are poor? Not all licensed games are bad.

 

[MrPing1000]

They need to learn. The future of gaming relies on it. Do the right thing. Buy her Ninja Gaiden and F-Zero GX

 

[border]

If you're even considering buying her multiple games, then why not just compromise and buy 1 good game and 1 licensed game. Go to Gamerankings and find the requested title with the highest score, and then throw in a copy of Mario vs Donkey Kong or something.

 

[PanopticBlue]

I had the same problem last year...my nephew wanted DBZ: Taiketsu or whatever the hell that shitty fighting game was. I got him Super Monkey Ball Jr. instead, with a note attached saying: I could not in good conscience buy you a bad game. He was happy with the game. I think he later bought himself that DBZ game and probably realized on his own that it was crap.

 

[Dsal]

Are you sure all of those games are poor? Not all licensed games are bad.

I'm sure some of them are just fine or even surprisingly good. Of course, they'd ahead of the curve. It's just hard to know which ones are good as it seems like many game reviewers kind of gloss over the licensed kiddie stuff because it's not targetted at them. I was just wondering if anyone out there knew if any of those kinds of games were actually decent or better.

 

[bitwise]

give her what she wants.

 

[Sho Nuff]

Go halfway. I would read the reviews on Pocket IGN and get the one or two best of the bunch, and then get her something butthumpingly awesomely fun. They're GBA games, they should be cheap.

 

[Duck of Death]

http://www.metacritic.com

Shrek 2 has a 72 and Lemony Snicket's has a 75.

Pirates of the Carribean has a 49.

Just get her what she wants. Jesus.

 

[Dsal]

They need to learn. The future of gaming relies on it. Do the right thing. Buy her Ninja Gaiden and F-Zero GX

She does have some hardcore gamer instincts in here. But maybe not that hardcore

She was struggling through Grand Turismo 3 when she was 8 and wouldn't accept any help from anyone. She also likes Wario Ware on the GC a lot. I would get her WW for GBA but since all my siblings and I separately have that one we could lend her one of our copies easily.

Hmm... maybe something like SMW3 combined with a licensed game with a decent rating like the Series of Unfortunate events would be a good combo then.

 

[NotMSRP]

Fire Emblem. Shape a future Fire Emblem fan and future RPG lover. It has a good story along with good characters along with stragetic but not overly difficult gameplay. The first 10 chapters are tutorial maps introducing the new player to the mechanics of the gameplay. Game has long lasting hours too.

 

[Sho Nuff]

She was struggling through Grand Turismo 3 when she was 8 and wouldn't accept any help from anyone.

Holy shit, how does an 8-year-old play GT3? All you do is drive the same oval track for the first 5 hours of the career mode. Er, that's all I could make of it, anyway.

 

[jarrod]

The new Kirby game (Amazing Mirror) might be a good option. Solidly old school Metroid design meets candy coated cute Kirby aesthetics and mechanics... not too hard but not a total cake walk either... plus, don't the kids like Kirby again these days?

 

[Ramirez]

Give her what she wants,kids don't care about gameplay like hardcore gamers,they want that familiar movie/character.I got my nephew the Power Rangers game because he loves them,I'd say its a shit game to us,but to a kid it's a goldmine.

Fire Emblem. Shape a future Fire Emblem fan and future RPG lover. It has a good story along with good characters along with stragetic but not overly difficult gameplay. The first 10 chapters are tutorial maps introducing the new player to the mechanics of the gameplay. Game has long lasting hours too.

Yea I can see a kid just LOVING a Strat. RPG...:|

 

[michael000]

Get her both, one game of her choice and one of yours. You may think it's your responsibility but think back and remember x-mas when you were a kid and somene bought you something you didn't want heh. What's another $20-25 anyways. If the games on her list are as bad as you think; in theory she should move to yours of her own choice and a kid making the right choice on their own is the best way to build foundations.

 

[Dsal]

Holy shit, how does an 8-year-old play GT3? All you do is drive the same oval track for the first 5 hours of the career mode. Er, that's all I could make of it, anyway.

The even more psycho part of it was that it was Rally Mode.

Hmm... forgot about Kirby... she may like that. Too bad they don't have Starfy here in the states ... that would've been perfect now that I think about it.

Fire Emblem is a good possibility too although how much she'd be into a game with direct violence against other human characters. Stepping on a cartoon turtle? Good times. Hacking at a Barbarian? Yucky and violent.

 

[GDJustin]

Fire Emblem is a horrible choice for someone that young.

 

[Duck of Death]

Give her what she wants,kids don't care about gameplay like hardcore gamers,they want that familiar movie/character.I got my nephew the Power Rangers game because he loves them,I'd say its a shit game to us,but to a kid it's a goldmine.

Listen to him. Who recommended Fire Emblem!? WTF!? :\

 

[onion_pixy]

I agree with the getting her one she wants and one you want her to have. As a little girl I love love loved Metroid. I read some spoilers in a mag and learned that under the helmet Samus was a chick "omg shes a girl like me I WANNA PLAY IT" Besdies I thought it would be cool to kick alian ass and shoot a plasma beam. So if you think she has hardcore tendencies maybe a metroid game, if you think she's up for it. Tho maybe spoiling the ending and telling her Samus is a chick is not the best idea. I played the orignal Metroid when I was like 10 I think so 8 dosent seem too young? Other than that Yoshi's Island or SMW

 

[Dsal]

I would've loved Fire Emblem at that age.
I loved that game Stratego, and Fire Emblem is just a more expansive version of it. I would be pretty psyched to basically play a more involved Stratego with battle animations.
But that's not so much to her tastes.

 

[StarscreamLSU]

I like the idea of getting here one licenced game and one good game. Lemony Snicket isn't THAT bad if you approach it from the mindset of a littel kid, so it would probably be the best choice. I'd get her that and Mario 3.

Someone mentioned Kim Possible 2, which is a pretty good choice. My little sister loves it.

 

[evilromero]

I'd give someone a crappy game.

 

[soul.less]

No, I'd get them a SNES and some games for it instead.

 

[Agent X]

If you're even considering buying her multiple games, then why not just compromise and buy 1 good game and 1 licensed game. Go to Gamerankings and find the requested title with the highest score, and then throw in a copy of Mario vs Donkey Kong or something.

That's probably the best advice.

If she asked specifically for just one game, then I would advise getting just that one game. However, if she's asking for three, and you have doubts about the quality of the games, then it's probably best to buy one or two of her choices, and combine that with one of your choice that you think she would enjoy.

 

[belgurdo]

You're not being cool or conscious of the kid's wishes by essentially saying "OMG Shrek is teh suck, I'll get her Fire Emblem and watch her cry during the fights lololol" To some, just being able to play as their animated hero of the month is more fulfilling than kicking a boss's ass in a popular RPG or whatever. Besides, didn't we all want our share of licensed crap based on Saturday Morning heroes back when we were kids too?

But if you MUST get them some alternate game, get Wario Ware or Megaman Battle Network (which is on TV at the least)

 

[fennec fox]

I would say "yes" simply because those are pretty much the only games that are E rated this holiday. Don't want to worry the parents.

 

[koam]

"Shrek 2 was sold out, i got you mario instead"

 

[Memles]

The kids I babysat a few years back were definitely influence by my gift suggestions that their parents asked me to give. Essentially, they buy First Party Nintendo games for their kids. When the kids save up their own money to buy games...they buy crap. Sigh.

If the reviews are good for those, pick one of them up, and then go through others. People keep mentioning Kim Possible. IGN seemed to really dig the most recent title, and if your niece watches the show it's a good pick. Plus, the show rocks. Seriously, it's fairly witty and some of the villians kick ass.

 

[Sho Nuff]

DO NOT BUY THEM FIRE EMBLEM. Jesus christ!

 

[Dragmire]

Get her Pirates of the Caribbean. She's not going to learn that a videogame is crap just because you told her it was. Seriously, I don't try to influence the videogame opinions of others anymore. There are two reasons: no one wants to be told what to like and people really like crap sometimes. Some games I love are considered crap by others, like Super Mario Sunshine. Even universally lauded games like Fire Emblem aren't really universally enjoyed. Let her see what those games are like, and if she wants to maybe you could let her play your games sometimes, too. I think it would be disastrous if she loved the game that she picked and hated the game you picked. Another hardcore gamer lost, and another soul for THQ or whoever does those games.

 

[Gek54]

I usually just ask them if they played it before and if they had I will go ahead and get it for them otherwise its forced nutrition.

 

[GG-Duo]

does she have porkyman gold/silver/fire/water/heart/your planet!!!/captain planet/he's our hero/leaf green/ruby/sapphire?

 

[PC Gaijin]

Buy her what she wants.

However, what is so wrong with Fire Emblem for an 8-year old? It all depends on the kid.

 

[bitwise]

Buy her what she wants.

However, what is so wrong with Fire Emblem for an 8-year old? It all depends on the kid.

it does, but i cant see many 8 year old girls going nuts for it. its all about presentation. her face would probably fall when she opened the present, because she got a "boys" game.

 

[Foobar]

Two Words: Gift Certificate.

 

[M3wThr33]

Get her Mario Kart, Pokemon and SMB3.
She needs them, not licensed crap. I taught my sister at a young age to FEAR movie/tv games.

The reason this cycle exists is because when the game is purchased, the child enjoys the graphics for the 30 seconds the mother watches the child play. He gets bored 2 minutes later, after the mother has walked off. Next time at the store he wants something that doesn't suck and picks crap again, rather than wanting to finish up Urban Yeti.

 

[fse]

Get her what she fucking wants! Goddamnit!
Throw in

too and the GBA must be an SP right...

How old is she by the way?

 

[BobbyRobby]

I got Dragon Warrior 4 for Christmas when I was seven years old. The greatest Christmas ever.

I don't think a girl would get into RPGs though, and you probably don't want her to become a huge nerd.

Astro Boy is licensed.....

 

[MetatronM]

If you're even considering buying her multiple games, then why not just compromise and buy 1 good game and 1 licensed game. Go to Gamerankings and find the requested title with the highest score, and then throw in a copy of Mario vs Donkey Kong or something.

This was going to be my suggestion. Though not necessarily the Mario vs. Donkey Kong part.

 

[Do The Mario]

At her age she will be ecstatic no matter what you get her, and has probably already forgotten what is on her list if not good surprises are nice.

Buy her Super Mario World: Yoshi’s Island

 

[SonicMegaDrive]

Licenced games? I happen to know the Spongebob, Shrek, Harry Potter, Shark Tale, and Incredibles games are selling quite well :lol

Seriously though, Astro Boy is probably the best 'licenced' title on the platform.

Anyway, if it's a game for a young boy or girl you're looking for, a Pokemon game will probably do the trick. If not there's dozens of other kid-friendly, but quality offerings.

Super Mario Bros. 3 or Super Mario World
Donkey Kong Country 1 or 2(Kids eat these up)
Any Kirby game
the Mario Tennis and Mario Golf games are pretty popular with young kids
Super Mario Kart
Disney's Aladdin or the Disney's Magical Quest starring Mickey Mouse games.(Good quality licenced games)
Any Sonic game
Boys are into the Mega Man Battle Networks and the Ninja Turtles games.
I'd almost say Yu-Gi-Oh since they are popular, but I've never played one so I can't verify it's quality.

Stay away from:
Elaborate RPGs like Final Fantasy or Fire Emblem. Not a good idea for an 8-year old. Mario and Luigi might be OK.
Hard platformers like Mega Man Zero or Ghouls N Ghosts.
Metroid games
Wario Ware.(I've tried to get kid to play this. They just can't seem to keep up with it)
Shooters like Gradius, Iridion II, or R-Type III(The latter of which should be avoided anyway)

 

[Drinky Crow]

Fuck yeah I would, kids'll like ANYTHING. I got Karate Kid for the NES when I was 13 and thought it was awesome.

 

[slayn]

I vote kirby + shrek 2.

I vote shrek two because I was too lazy to type out the name of the one that scored higher.... but not too lazy to type this out. Strange how laziness works.

while I think fire emblem is better than anything else listed in this thread, and I would have fallen in love with it even at like 5 years old let alone 8, it doesn't sound like thats where her interests lie. And if she doesn't like the main idea behind fire emblem, its a wasted gift as you can't really just mess around with it for a few hours, you really have to get into it.

 

[fse]

i got tiny toons adv. for snes when i was a kid and i thought it was the shit...so cool.
:'(

 

[Bog]

give her what she wants.

^

 

[SonicMegaDrive]

I don't know. One of the first games I ever got was for my NES(Friday the 13th), and even at that young tender age I knew it sucked. Of course, my first two games were Super Mario Bros. and Adventure Island, so I was immediately spoiled. :lol

 

[Rummy Bunnz]

I have 5 nephews. Every once in awhile they'll ask for some terrible licensed game as a gift, and everytime they've hated the game once they've gotten it. Everytime I've ignored their requests for, like, Obi-Wan and gotten them something that's actually good they loved it once the initial disappointment wore off. Maybe all my relations are just exceedingly jaded for their age, but I'm pretty sure kids DON'T like any old shit. I know I hated it all those LJN games people kept buying me as a kid.

Border's idea is pretty solid, though. I'm pretty sure you can get Pirates of the Caribbean for $10 or so at Target, so getting that and a Mario game or something would be a good idea.

 

[Vormund]

If you're even considering buying her multiple games, then why not just compromise and buy 1 good game and 1 licensed game. Go to Gamerankings and find the requested title with the highest score, and then throw in a copy of Mario vs Donkey Kong or something.

Exactly what I was thinking. Also she has a point of comparison.

Remember, we need bad games to truly appreciate all the good ones.